Gallatin teen Lucas Leon, who first turned heads with his original song “Fall In Love Someday” on American Idol, is back on stage, this time facing the high-stakes pressure of Hollywood Week, taking place at The Fisher Center inside of Belmont University in Music City this year.
The 17-year-old Tennessee native’s vocals earned praise and a standing ovation from the three Idol judges Lionel Richie, Carrie Underwood and Luke Bryan with his Idol audition, where he performed an original song and Underwood predicted that he “could go pretty far in this competition.”
Idol aired a flashback to Leon’s first-ever live performance, which took place during a piano recital when he was just 8 years old, and he performed the “Winnie The Pooh” theme song. Looking back at that performance, Lucas Leon admitted that he never thought he would be performing on such a massive stage just nine years later on national television.
Leon explained, “First time performed on a stage was just at my piano recital. I was probably about eight years old. I thought I had just won a Grammy after I sang that song. I don’t think my younger self would really believe it that I would be performing on this massive stage. [With my] audition, I [played] guitar this week showing a little bit of different side of myself. I’m going to have to my game if I wanna get to that [Top 30].”
Before taking to The Fisher Center for the Performing Arts stage in front of his fellow Idol hopefuls and the judges, Leon took a minute to look at his competition. “I’ve heard people sing and there’s a lot of very, very, very talented people here. This is the biggest stage that I’ve ever performed on in my life,” Leon continued.
He then took the stage and sat behind the keyboard for his second Idol performance. Lucas Leon chose “Georgia On My Mind” by Ray Charles, a fitting selection that showcased his vocal control. Accompanying himself on piano, Leon confidently delivered the classic with polished, radio-ready vocals that sounded worthy of awards, or even the title of the next American Idol.
“Georgia, Georgia/ The whole day through (The whole day through)/ Just an old, sweet song/ Keeps Georgia on my mind (Georgia on my mind),” Leon sang on the opening verse of the song.
Luke Bryan, a Georgia native, responded to the performance with clear enthusiasm. “I mean, 17 years old, coming out here… you know, I’m from Georgia, so you’re already trying to make me…Playin the room already, you did great,” Bryan said, praising Lucas Leon’s talents, to which Leon jokingly replied, “I’m sucking up a little bit.”
Following commentary from Luke Bryan, Lucas Leon was forced to wait as the Idol judges reviewed a few more performances from Idol hopefuls before revealing his fate on the popular singing competition show. Leon was then among three Idol hopefuls whose names were called, revealing that they earned a spot in the golden room, making him one step closer to securing a spot in the Top 30.
“He only called three names and praise be that I was one of them,” Lucas said, giving him peace of mind.
American Idol airs every Monday at 8/7c on ABC, and is available to stream next day on Hulu.
